The first Flat Track track in Greece was officially delivered to the public!
A year and a half after our first contact with the exciting sport of dirt track, in January 2016 at Del Mar Arena, outside San Diego, the dream begins to come true. The first flat track in Greece was set up with the support of Red Bull Hellas in the space provided by the Riding School in Afidnes and was officially delivered to the public!
And we could not ask for anything more for a premiere than a flat track clinic with Aaron Colton, the all-around rider from California Aaron is a professional stunt rider and holds several participations in flat track races with DTX & Hooligan motorcycles.
Aaron welcomed us to the classroom to introduce us the sport, with some tips for preparing and setting up a motorcycle for dirt track and basic principles of sliding on the ground. It was now time foir some drills, and we all hit the oval track.
We had a few Yamaha TTR 125 as school bikes and started to get comfortable with sliding with some riding drills. Then , under the guidance of Aaron we got into rhythm for our first laps. Divided into groups of 3, we initially applied what we saw in the exercises, with cones placed, indicating the ideal line of approach to the turns. Along the way, the cones were removed and the vattles begun. Of course, without using the front brake…
A snack break followed, with the crew of Brokies Mood Bar offering the necessary protein to the participants, just before the grand finale of the night, an unofficial race for those who wanted to try the results of the clinic against each other!
The lights of the track were on and the participants, some of whom were spectators who were just "jealous" and expressed interest on the spot, divided into heats of three, we took our place at the start and with Aaron throwing the flag. The battles that followed are definitely one of the highlights of the sport, since a small track in combination with small motorcycles raises the fun factor vertically.
Amateur motorcyclists, experienced riders from different categories, girls & groms, all managed to feel why Flat Track is experiencing a renaissance worldwide. "Today was a revelation. We learned a lot and laughed a lot, really the flat track seems to have the perfect ratio of satisfaction per lap! " , said the Enduro champion Dimitris Vangelakos, winner of the race.
Hoping this being only a first step towards creating a new scene, 26-year-old Aaron Colton seemed very pleased with the development of the riders but also their willingness to learn as much as possible about himself, his technique and the secrets of the sport. "I did not expect such a positive response. They were ready to forget what they knew and adjust to something new for them. And that's the hardest step." , Aaron said shortly before leaving for the US again.
Stay tuned, flat track seems it's here to stay.
Ζ.
